Kamala Harris was quick to jump into the Jussie Smollett story when it broke. She had no trouble believing that the black gay man was a victim of violence from Trump supporters.
Now that it’s looking like the whole thing was a hoax, she doesn’t have much to say. A reporter asked her about on Monday and she looked like a deer in headlights.
The Washington Free Beacon reports:
Harris Freezes, Laughs Awkwardly When Asked About Calling Smollett Incident a ‘Modern-Day Lynching’
Sen. Kamala Harris (D., Calif.) froze and awkwardly looked around when pressed Monday on her tweet that the alleged attack on Jussie Smollett was a “modern-day lynching,” before saying she needed to see all the facts.
Smollet, a gay, black actor, claimed he was the victim of a hate crime in January, saying two men beat him up in a Chicago street, poured bleach on him and placed a rope around his neck. He also said they yelled, “This is MAGA country,” a reference to President Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” campaign slogan. The story has taken a turn, with police now reportedly investigating whether Smollett orchestrated the attack himself by paying two Nigerian brothers to do it.
Democratic politicians were quick to believe Smollett’s account at the time and tweet out their condemnations, including Harris and other 2020 presidential candidates. She praised the actor as “one of the kindest, most gentle human beings I know” and said “this was an attempted modern day lynching.”
Here is her tweet:
.@JussieSmollett is one of the kindest, most gentle human beings I know. I’m praying for his quick recovery.
This was an attempted modern day lynching. No one should have to fear for their life because of their sexuality or color of their skin. We must confront this hate.
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) January 29, 2019
And here’s the video where she’s asked about it:
This comes just two days after Harris was captured on camera palling around with the reporters who are supposed to be covering her. They were actually helping her try on clothes in a boutique. See below:
We kind of forced @kamalaharris to try on this awesome oversized rainbow sequin jacket … She snapped it up. @alivitali perfectly named it as “the Mardi Gras Jacket” #2020 #SouthCarolina #CampaignFashionReport pic.twitter.com/2G0NFRkKL6
— Maeve Reston (@MaeveReston) February 16, 2019
When the campaign trail takes you to a boutique, and @MaeveReston spots a great sequined jacket for @KamalaHarris to try on. #campaignfashionreport pic.twitter.com/38bYJKqjRI
— Caitlin Huey-Burns (@CHueyBurns) February 16, 2019
Amazing. These people are journalists?
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